Process of manufacturing ice.



No. 703,3!4. Patent ed lune 24, I902 S. N. SMITH.

PROCESS OF MANUFACTURING ICE.

(Application filed Aug. 5 1901 (No Model.)

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' citizen of the United States, residing in Phila- UrrEn STATES PATENT (juries.

SOMMERS N. SMITH, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA/ PROCESS OF MANUFACTURING ICE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 703,314, dated June 24, 1902.

Application filed August 5, 1901. Serial No. 71,002. (No specimens.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, SoMMERs N. SMITH, a

delphia, Pennsylvania, have invented certain Improvements in the Process of Manufacturing Ice, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to the manufacture of ice by that class of machines in which the freezing takes place on the outer surface of a revolving cylinder or any other convenient form of vessel submerged in water, which ice is removed from such cylinder or other vessel by means of a series of reciprocating knives, revolving cutters, or other approved devices, the object being to shave off the ice in small pieces, so that itcan be readily and more perfectly regealedin suitable compressing-chamhers. In machines of this character the great difficulty heretofore has been the conveying of the shaved ice from the tanks in which the freezing-cylinders are submerged to the compressors.

The object of my invention is to provide a natural method of efiecting the transfer of the particles of shaved ice to the compressionchamber.

In carrying out my. invention I have do: vised a form of apparatus a diagram of which in perspective is shown in the accompanying drawing.

In all ice-machines of the character above referred to mechanical meanssuch as screwconveyers, paddles, and devices of like naturehave been employed to remove the shaved ice as it rises to the surface of the water in the freezing-tank. In actual practice all such mechanical devices have failed to properly remove the shaved ice, and as a result the freezing-tank, together with all parts of the conveying apparatus, rapidly becomes clogged with a mush of floating ice, and the continuous operation of the machine is thereby prevented.

My invention consistsin employing a system of pumping apparatus to produce a surface current in the freezing tank, and thereby wash off the floating shaved ice as it rises to the top of the water in said tank. A weir of suitable width and depth is arranged at the end of the freezing-tank, leading into a convenient rcceivingtank,from which the shaved ice may be removed by other pumps and conveyed to the compressor. The surplus water passing into the receiving-tank is withdrawn from the bottom of the same and conveyed by pumping apparatus, above referred to, to the upper end of the freezing-tank, so as to create the current just described.

In the figure of drawing accompanying this specification,1 is the freezing-tank, filled with water to the level as and having one or more freezing-cylinders 2. Theice',which is shaved off said cylinders 2 by any suitable means, rises to the surface of the water in said tank and is washed or skimmed off by the current from the pump 3 as rapidly as it gets to the surface, passing over the weir 4 into the rcceiving-tank 5.

The freezing-tank 1 is subdivided, especially where there is more than one freezingcylinder, by a suitable diaphragm or partition 6. The discharge-pipe 7, leading from the pump 3, is bifurcated, forming two discharge-nozzles 8. These nozzles are flattened, as shown, and are preferably the full width or nearly the full width of the separate chambers of the freezing-tank 1, in order that the current from the same may sweep the surface of such tank clear of all floating ice.

The ice, as noted above, passes into the receiving-tank 5. Leading from the bottom of this tank is a pipe 9, connected at its opposite end to the pump 3. This pipe is provided with a valve 10, and the position of this valve is controlled by a float 11 in the tank 5, such float being connected to the said valve by a series of suitable links and levers.

12 is a pump for conveying the particles of shaved ice from the receiving-tank 5 to the compression-chamber 13. A pipe 14 leads from this tank to said pump 12, and this pipe has an upwardly-projecting suction-nozzle 15, which serves to remove the shaved ice from the surface of the water. Any surplus water carried by this pump is carried off from the com pression-chamber by any suitable means.

At the bottom of the tank 5 a perforated plate 16 is arranged in order that the suction of the pipe 9 may be distributed over the entire area of the receptacle, thereby avoiding any danger of inducing a strong local downward current, which might carry the shaved ice with it.

ICC

If desired, the conveying of the particles of ice from the freezingtank to the receivingtank may be followed by the transfer of such particles to the compressingchamber or chambers by the action of gravity alone without the use of a pump. To carry this operation into effect, the freezing-tank and receivingtank should be located some distance above the compressing-chambers. As the ice particles will be carried into the compressing chamber or chambers by the simple pressure exerted by the head of water between the receiving-tank and the said compressing-chamber and as such pressure is considerablyless than that which could be obtained by the use of a pump to force the particles of ice into such compression-chamber, a large quantity of Water will be present. In order that this excessive quantity of water accompanying the ice particles may be accommodated, these chambers should be longer than usual in order that they may contain, in addition to the waterya sufficient accumulation of the ice particles to be pressed into blocks of normal or usual size.

In the form of gravity transfer just pro posed the superfluous water that is carried over with the shaved ice will be returned to the freezing-tank by a separate elevatingpump.

It is well-known that all accumulations of loose ice or other floating substances on the surfaces of rivers are naturally removed by being washed off by means of surface-currents, and my improved process of handling @ihe particles of ice follows this natural method.

Having thus described my invention, I

claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent-- 1. The process of manufacturing ice which consists in formiugathin coating of ice upon a vessel submerged in a body of water, removing the coating of ice in small pieces which rise to the surface of the Water, delivering a current of water at, and parallel to, the surface of the body of water, and causing said current to pass over the entiresurface of said body of Water and carry off said pieces of ice from said body of water.

2. The process of manufacturing ice which consists in forming a thin coating of ice upon a moving vessel submerged in a body of water, removing the coating of ice in small pieces which rise to the surface of the water, delivering a current of water at, and parallel to, the surface of the body of water and cansing said current to pass over the entire surface of said body of water and carry off said pieces of ice, and then compressing said ice particles into blocks.

3. The process of manufacturing ice which consists in forming a thin coating of ice upon a vessel submerged in a body of water, removing the coating of ice in small pieces which rise to the surface of the Water, delivering a current of water at, and parallel to, the surface of the body of water and cansing said current to pass over the entire surface of said body of water and carry off said pieces of ice therefrom, eliminating the water from said ice particles, and finally compressing the latterinto solid blocks.

4:. The process of manufacturing ice which consists in forming a thin coating of ice upon a moving vessel submerged in a body of water, removing the coating of ice so formed in small pieces which rise to the surface of the Water, delivering a current of water at, and parallel to, the surface of the body of water and causing said current to pass over the entire surface of said body of Water and carry off said pieces of ice therefrom, conveying said particles of ice to a point where the surplus water may be separated and removed, and finally compressing the ice particles into solid blocks.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

SOMMERS N. SMITH.

WVi tnesses:

MURRAY 0. BOYER, Jos. H. KLEIN. 

